After the Fall CONTAINS SPOILERS FOR ENDGAME
by TCMMerida
Summary: *CONTAINS SPOILERS FOR ENDGAME* A soul for a soul. What happens after the fall?


This was my choice.

Clint had me pinned on the ground. He was determined that he would sacrifice himself, but that stupid grin of his remained on his face. I kneed his thigh and rolled us over. I shot to my feet and dashed to the edge of the cliff.

Then the world flipped and I was in the dirt. Clint sprinted past me and carelessly leapt off the cliff. I scrambled to my feet and drew my harness. Shooting it into the side of the cliff, I tumbled downward colliding into Clint's side. I attached the harness to him in the midst of falling and tried to force myself away from him.

Clint's hand wrapped around my arm. Tears filled his eyes as he struggled to get out of the harness. A ghost of a smile crossed my lips. He could not free himself without letting me go.

He had to let me go.

But he never would. And I knew it.

That is why it had to be me.

"Natasha, please," he gripped harder as gravity took its toll on his strength.

Now it was my turn to cry. But we had promised each other.

Whatever it takes.

I pushed myself off the cliff wall and broke free of his hold.

He would have done it for me.

For all of us.

I fixed my eyes on him as I plummeted towards the ground.

Time slowed. I could feel the air rippling through my fingertips as I gazed towards the darkened Vormir skies. Clint's frame became a shadow, disappearing from sight and mind.

Hold on a little longer Natasha.

This is for them. My family.

Stark, Rodgers, Thor, Banner and Fury. Those who I thought were enemies whom I had come to love.

Remembering them gave me strength. I was ready to go.

The earth collided with my head, and my body went limp. Blood coloured the stone surface. My eyes remained opened. A shimmering golden stone floated past me. The colour was mesmerizing, as dazzling, mournful and brilliant as life itself. It rose to the top of the cliff where Clint was hanging. I saw him grasp the stone and gaze down at me. My soulless body now reconciled for my past, and a promise of the future. My eyes would never be closed.

But that is okay.

What I see now is gold. The sky has changed, the cliffs are gone, and around me, I can see all those whom I have loved and lost. I am a part of the stone.

It shows me whoever I want to see. I can watch them. Watch as Stark gives his life for his family. I will see him soon. I can watch as Steve reunites with Peggy, finally going on a date. I can watch as Bucky and Falcon take on the world, being the stupid, reckless idiots that they are. I can watch as Thor joins a vagabond group of space pirates as they pursue their own place in the universe. He always was a misfit. Just like me. Just like all of us. The world has no place for us. They feared us, loved us and hated us.

I see Clint with his family again. Happy and carefree, teaching Lila to shoot. She has his spirit. I wish I could have spent more time with her. I can watch as Banner lives in peace with himself and the world. I am so proud of him. I hope he knows.

I miss you all.

But you are not far.

I can see him now. The arrogant, selfish, genius who started it all. Who cared more about getting a cheeseburger than addressing the fact that there were people who wanted to hear his story. Who learned that to love means that you sometimes have to lose it all. I guess we have that in common. We had nothing, and then we had each other. We had our family. Instead of taking lives, we were saving them. We burned bridges, then rebuilt them. Out of the nothing we built an empire only to watch it fall to dust. But even dust can be reformed, and beauty can come from ashes.

Tony looks at me. He looks at what I see. He sees what is left behind.

A rattled breath fills the silence which has been my company for the last few days.

"Where am I?"

I stepped towards him, aware of the electric air. "The soul stone."

Tony looked over his shoulder, a look of confusion plastered on his face.

"I guess it saw you using the stones as a sacrifice," I wondered aloud.

He nodded slowly, taking in the expansive space. "It's roomy."

"Yeah, well, now with you here it feels a lot more crowded."

Tony chuckled and looked at past me. He nodded towards one of the scenes. "He tried to save you," he motioned to Banner, who was handling the controls of the quantum portal, sorrow marking the corners of his eyes. Bucky and Sam were next to him. Sam was in a panic, whereas Bucky maintained a melancholic stare. He called out to Sam and the two looked out at a man who was sitting by a lake.

I leaned on Tony's shoulder, looking at our friends. "I know. But he cannot."

Tony wrapped his arm around me. "Cap is coming soon."

"Guess I can go deliver that fossil to the Smithsonian then," I chuckled.

Tony smirked, dropping his arm. "Fantastic idea, just make sure that you say hi to the kid and Pepper on the way."

The sky began to shimmer. A new soul had joined us.

"Told you it would not be long," Stark said, wandering over to where the light was intensifying. "Are you coming?"

"In a minute," I crossed my arms.

Stark nodded curtly and continued making his way to the new figure.

I turned back to the scene. Sam wielded Cap's shield on his arm, while Bucky looked knowingly at him.

They would be okay.

And so would I.


End file.
